The Small Council: The Episodes
by imabench
Summary: Bail out the Iron Bank? Rebuild the Capital or Move it? Revolt in the Stormlands? Dothraki Deportation? Under their new lord 'Bran the Broken', Tyrion and the small council must try to sort out the multitude of issues in the 6 kingdoms and beyond. Series of one-shot stories updated very irregularly. If you have any ideas of suggestions feel free to mention so in the reviews!
1. Chapter 1: The Iron Bank

After Tyrion carefully arranges the chairs around the table and takes his seat at the front, the rest of the council comes in and takes seats at random, much to Tyrion's annoyance. They don't even sit in the same seats they sat in last time! He ponders making nametags and assigning people to certain seats for the sake of organization, but with the shake of his head and a sip of wine he dismisses the small annoyance and mentally prepares himself for today's main issue:

The Iron Bank.

* * *

**Tyrion**: "Welcome everyone. The first order of business to handle comes to us from Braavos... Chiefly, the Iron Bank"  
**Bronn**: "Aren't those the same shits that you were in deep debt to back when you were master of Coin?"  
**Tyrion**: "They are"  
**Davos**: "What do they want, payback for their debts from the rule of the Lannisters?"  
**Bronn**: "They're about to be shit out of luck if they expect us to pay back those debts"  
**Tyrion**: "The issue, ironically, is almost the exact opposite... Because the Iron Bank invested a fair amount in both the Lannisters and also Stannis Baratheon, the bank has found themselves in substantial debt, and are asking us to bail them out"  
**Brienne**: "The Iron Bank is asking _US_ for money?"  
**Samwell**: "Why would they give money to Stannis Baratheon and the Lannisters if the two were fighting each other?"

**Davos**: "I may have convinced them that Stannis and his campaign were worth funding"

Silence breaks out in the council as the members cope with the realization that not only had Davos met with these mysterious power bankers on the other side of the world, he convinced them to fund a doomed military campaign for Stannis

**Tyrion**: "You've met with the Iron bank before?"  
**Brienne**: "You convinced them to fund Stannis?"  
**Davos**: "I did, and, well, it certainly wasn't easy. Very cold, calculating lot they are. After our surprising defeat in Blackwater Bay (glances at Tyrion) we had to seek out funding and supplies to rebuild. We went to the Iron Bank, and managed to convince them to fund us"  
**Bronn**: "Why would bankers give money to both the Lannisters and Stannis if the two were fighting each other? If you do that then you will inevitably lose since one side would be defeated and you lose your bet"  
**Samwell**: "Well you did the same thing for the Cersei and Tyrion didn't you?"  
**Bronn**: "No I didnt _give_ money to both of them, I TOOK money from them both... Important difference... Taking money from both sides fighting each other is much smarter than giving money to both sides fighting each other."  
**Tyrion**: "Davos, how did you convince them to fund Stannis?"

**Davos**: "Well the gist of it was that Tywin Lannister was at the end of his run, in age so to speak, and once he died the Lannisters would lose much of their respect and authority in the realm. Once that happened Stannis would become a better option to invest in long term as a strong and stable authority that commanded respect in the realm"

**Brienne**: "Rather absurd thing to believe in hindsight now isn't it?"  
**Tyrion**: "Well they were right that my father out of the picture would destabilize the image of the Lannisters. In other circumstances I could have made the Iron Bank the happiest bankers in the world"  
**Bronn**: "Oh lucky you. You can add that to the rest of the list of things that book doesn't mention of you"  
**Tyrion** (Visibly annoyed): "Back to the point, The Iron Bank is in crisis and we have an opportunity to-"  
**Bronn**: "Are we actually considering this?... They made a bet, they bet on the wrong people, now they have to deal with that. Why should we have to bail them out for their own fuckups?"  
**Brienne**: (Nods)  
**Tyrion**: "As scheming and conniving as the Iron Bank is... And was... And still will be... They make a useful ally to have in our back pocket should a crisis arise and we need a large amount of money"  
**Davos**: "A large amount of money that they don't have anymore because they gave it to the wrong people"

**Samwell**: "Well the last time this happened and they asked for money from elsewhere it turned out fairly well for a lot of people"

All eyes now shift to Samwell's attention, almost in more disbelief than Davos's confession earlier. After a sheepish pause, he swayed his head to one side and started talking as if he was sharing an embarrassing story from his childhood.

**Samwell**: "There is some info in the book I showed you that detailed how at one point the Iron Bank actually fell to the _second_ most powerful bank in the world, behind The Rogare Bank, from the city of Lys... The Rogare Bank achieved power when Lady Larra Rogare was wed to Prince Viserys Targaryean, combining their massive wealth into one when the Iron Bank was coming off a series of bad investments... People began to trust the Rogare Bank while the Iron Bank sought out a-, a bail out, but then the Rosare bank collapsed and the Iron Bank survived. Those who supported and stayed with the Iron Bank were granted special conditions as a reward for their loyalty."

**Davos**: "What kind of conditions?"  
**Samwell**: "Negative 5 percent interest rates for any amount of money requested for a 30 year period"

**Tyrion and Davos**: *Surprised*  
**Bronn and Brienne**: *Confused*

**Bronn**: "Can someone translate for me what kind of reward that is?"  
**Tyrion**: "It means that for 30 years anyone who had helped the Iron Bank in their time of need was allowed to borrow as much money as they needed, and they only needed to pay back 95% of what they borrowed... For 30 years..."  
**Bronn**: "Not much of a reward if you ask me"  
**Davos**: "Was it specified how much money they are asking for? Regardless if bailing them out is a good idea or not, we're not exactly swimming in gold or silver ourselves, especially with a ruined city on our hands we have to rebuild from scratch"  
**Tyrion**: The specific number Iron Bank requested is 1.2 million at minimum to avoid becoming insolvent, but that any amount would be appreciated"  
**Brienne**: "1.2 _million_? Do we even have 1.2 thousand total, let alone to spare?"  
**Bronn**: "Recent total is at 60 thousand. And rising. Slowly"  
**Davos**: "That is a pretty steep price I have to admit"  
**Tyrion**: "Obviously we can't fund the Iron Bank's request in full, but whether we should and by how much is what we are here to discuss"  
**Bronn**: "Ive already heard enough to vote no. They ask for too much money that we don't have for a reward thats not that good from people who wouldn't hesitate to betray us if we screw up. I say fuck em"  
**  
Brienne**: "I also vote no. Not even a question"  
**Davos**: (Unsure)  
**Samwell**: (Not picking a side)

**Tyrion**: "The Iron Bank is weak now, but they could become strong again in the future, especially if we need to start borrowing money to rebuild the city, which we probably will"  
**Davos**: "Nations come and go. Kings come and go, Armies come and go. Banks are no different. It wouldn't be any skin off our rear if they go unless there is something in that book of yours that says otherwise"  
**Samwell**: "Well those who sided with the Rogare Bank had to borrow at higher rates from the Iron Bank when they sought out money-"  
**Davos**: "Did the Iron Bank fund the enemies of those houses that sided with the Rogare Bank"  
**Samwell**: "... The book doesnt say, but, it wouldn't be surprising if they did"  
**Brienne**: "How will the bank fund any of our enemies if they dont have funds for themselves? This is clearly a request that should be denied"  
**Bronn**: "What do you think? You used to be the master of coin and were good at it, your opinion matters most of all"

All eyes in the room shift to Tyrion, who rather then looking deep in thought and trying to sort through the clouds in his mind instead appeared quite pensive and reflective.

**Tyrion**: "When I turned 20, old enough to know Casterly Rock inside and out as well as start gaining friends outside in the city who fed me information, one of the first friends I made was this man named Arric. Also in his 20's, blind in one eye, not very strong and walked with a limp, we were both outcasts and naturally got along swimmingly. One day he mentioned this hand maiden who used to work for my family but was expelled from the castle, who I thought was dead. Out of curiosity, I tracked her down and found that she became destitute on the streets because she had to borrow money from this notorious loan shark who kept her in perpetual poverty... The loan shark himself was this, truly awful bastard named Elron Gundrick. Just a detestable human being if there ever was one."

All eyes were still locked on as Tyrion recalled this memory, knowing it had to have something to do with the decision they were going to make

**Tyrion**: "Elron made a living loaning money to people at high rates, then doing a number of terrible things to people who didn't pay up. He spent a lot of the money he got getting drunk at brothels, always drinking the same type of, I don't know what it was but it tasted like horse piss to me. It would be easy to poison him and eliminate him as a problem for so many people, so I did... I decided that this man deserved to die, and he became the first person I ever tried to kill... With poison..."

He paused then looked up, somber.

**Tyrion**: "The poison did the trick. He died, and no one ever suspected anyone did anything, let alone the dwarf son of Tywin Lannister. A few days after that, I never saw the handmaiden on the streets again, and also never saw my friend Arric either... I only later found out that the loan shark Elron was using his money to pay off these rival gangs from attacking and abducting others, so that he could get money from those people himself. Once he was out of the picture, the handmaiden was taken and sold off into slavery, and Arric was kidnapped and held for ransom... His family was unwilling to pay the ransom, so they slit his throat and dumped him into the town square at night."

Bronn and Davos exchanged glances with each other while Samwell and Brienne looked towards the floor.

**Tyrion**: "My fear isn't that our investment might be a bad one or that the Iron Bank could support our foes should they regain power in the future... My fear is that other people, possibly allies of ours, who depend on the Iron Bank or gave money to them might have their investments lost, and then have terrible things happen to them as a result... Of course, this is speculation since we don't know which other kingdoms or lords rely on the Iron Bank, but I think we should donate at least something to help them. Enough to give them a chance to recover"

Nobody said anything for a while as they processed Tyrion's line of reasoning. It was only when Tyrion himself broke the silence that the atmosphere returned to the room.

**Tyrion**: "We have 60 thousand at our disposal, I would vote we give them 10 thousand to help. 12 at the most"  
**Bronn**: "I vote no. People make bad bets all the time, this feels like a bad bet"  
**Brienne**: "I still vote no. 10 thousand to the bank is 10 thousand less available to help the people and the kingdom recover"

**Davos**: "I vote yes"

Eyes shift over to Davos in surprise

**Davos**: "They're an insidious lot I'll admit, but a little good faith when you need it most goes a long way, and we may need that one day. Yes to 8 thousand"  
**Bronn**: "The hell is 8 thousand going to do against 1.2 million? Thats like trying to fill up an empty sea with your own piss"  
**Tyrion**: "Alright then Tarly, its your vote to break the tie"  
**Samwell**: "Oh I don't think I should vote on this"  
**Tyrion**: "You know more about the history of the Iron Bank than the rest of us in here, you are a member of the small council, and we have a 2 to 2 tie with your vote remaining, you absolutely deserve to have a say on this"  
**Samwell**: "Its just... Well... What if there's some other way? Something else we could do?"  
**Davos**: "Do you have anything in mind?"

**Samwell**: "...The Iron Islands, when they were first founded, had such a lack of resources, apart from iron of course, that they had a problem in having money for people to use. They couldnt trade anything for gold or silver, they didnt have any to mine for themselves, and what could be stolen was kept amongst the Greyjoys to use for themselves rather than for their own people. What they tried to do was have paper money that could be printed and used in place of gold and silver-"

**Bronn**: "What kind of stupid logic is that?"

His sudden interruption derails Samwell's train of thought.

**Bronn**: "Paper money? Money you can fold in half and shove in your own pocket? That would be fuckin worthless to try to use. If I kill someone and they try to pay me with paper, then I'm killing that person too and taking something worth of actual value off of them instead"  
**Samwell**: "If you let me finish-"  
**Bronn**: "Lord forbid if I have something that can print things on paper too, otherwise I could print my own money and be fucking rich. _Anybody_ who could make paper would become fucking rich, assuming the money is worth shit in the first place"  
**Samwell**: "If we use a paper currency we could easily make $1.2 million and give it to the Iron Bank, and maybe work something out"  
**Tyrion**: "We would need to control the value of the currency and its production if we tried this, but it would be incredibly difficult and cause more problems than before. Davos, you're the worlds best smuggler, what do you think of this idea?"

**Davos**: "In the profession of smuggling, there's 2 and only 2 reasons why people do it. First is theyre trying to move something in secret because its illegal and could get them killed. More commonly though is that theyre moving something in secret because its taxed, and selling it secretly gets them more money... If we try this... This paper money, and people think its worthless or want to stick with gold, people would become smugglers all over the place to get paid with what they want to be paid in, and those who smuggle things to us would stop since we're paying them with things printed on paper now. It would be bad for the people, bad for collecting taxes, bad for business."

Bronn makes a grand and very visible gesture to Davos as if thanking him.

**Bronn**: "The master of coin thinks it's a bad idea, the worlds best smuggler thinks it's a bad idea. If the two of us agree on this as different as we are, I can't imagine why this would be a good idea to begin with."  
**Tyrion**: (reluctantly nodding) "Its an interesting idea, but at this time not really an option we can afford to explore, quite literally"

Samwell, conceding defeat and internally admitting he could have introduced the idea in a better fashion, slouches into his chair and relents. "Yes for 8000"

**Tyrion**: "That gives us 3 yes votes and 2 no votes, of the yes votes the majority is 8000 so I'll switch my vote to that, giving it 3 out of 5 votes. Sam, send a raven to the Iron Bank detailing that we can send them 8,000 gold if they choose to accept"  
**Bronn**: "_Choose_ to accept? When has a fuckin bank ever said no to free fuckin money?"  
**Tyrion**: "Good point, a raven granting the Iron Bank 8,000 gold will suffice Sam"  
**Davos**: "Make them have to arrange to come and claim it with their own ships. We're giving them free money, we shouldn't have to use our own stuff to send it to them"  
**Bronn**: (Raises a glass of wine in Davos's direction) "That's two things the master of coin and worlds best smuggler agree on now!"


	2. Chapter 2: The Coronation

After a slight hangover, which doesn't usually happen following the morning wine, Tyrion takes his place at the head of the table and waits for the rest of the council to enter. A small storage of wildfire exposed from the siege but not ignited caused quite a scene in the ruins of the city late last night, citizens clamored for as much of it as they could get in the hopes they could sell it for gold or trade it for food. Short of having a dragon or an entire army, the wildfire was just about the most dangerous thing a single person could utilize in warfare. A good amount of it was recovered by soldiers who confiscated it, while others turned it in in the hopes they could gain good favor and some sort of reward (which they were with extra bread). No one knows about how much was found in the first place, so no one could know for sure if all of it had been recovered, or only a majority of it.

As Tyrion tries to ignore the possible disaster scenarios this could trigger, the rest of the council comes in and noisily take their seats. Tyrion eases his hangover with another glass of wine, as per tradition in the Lannister house.

* * *

**Tyrion**: "Any news anyone would like to bring to our attention before we get things started?"  
**Bronn**: "The Iron Bank has responded to our offer of 8000 gold for their troubles. They expressed their disappointment that the crown could only offer such a small amount of money, and also bemoaned that they would have to manage for its transport"  
**Davos**: "Did they decline our offer?"  
**Bronn**: "Of course they fuckin didn't... Like I said, no bank ever says no to free money"  
**Tyrion**: "Frankly I don't think any person or organization in the world would say no to free money"  
**Bronn**: (Nods)  
**Tyrion**: "Very well... Our biggest issue of the day, besides the continued effort of rebuilding Kings Landing, is the issue presented by the coronation of our new king"  
**Brienne**: "Was the election of Bran by the most powerful lords of the land not the coronation? What else is needed to make it official?"

**Tyrion**: "Its not the issue of making his crowning official or not, the issue is how to handle the opportunity now presented to us... Historically, when a new king is named, a coronation is held to celebrate him, to appease the lower population with festivities, and also to raise money from lower lords hoping to buy good favor with the new king... Quite literally... With our new king being elected by vote from a number of powerful lords already, with there being a need for gold more than any time before, the issue of whether or not to use the coronation for raising funds from wealthy lords or to appease the masses of people whose lives we have made substantially worse in the past few months needs to be settled"

**Davos**: "What are our options?"  
**Tyrion**: "One, we can say fuck the lords and have the coronation be a giant soup and bread line. Everyone in the city would be invited for free food, be able to see and meet the king who will be stationed at the end of the line, and then have a nice and quiet place to have a good meal"  
**Brienne**: "I already like that option quite a lot"  
**Samwell**: (nods)  
**Tyrion**: "Two, we spend what money we have left on a legitimate ceremony to try to curry favor with the lesser yet still wealthy lords of the realm who were not present at the ceremony who elected Bran as the new king..."  
**Bronn**: "I imagine thats the option that brings us the most coin?"  
**Tyrion**: "As far as I know"  
**Samwell**: "Has Bran said anything about what he wants? If it's his coronation then his opinion on the matter should be the final say on the matter should it not?"  
**Brienne**: (Nods and looks at Tyrion)

**Tyrion**: "King Bran has said that I am to decide how to handle the affair, I assume this is because he doesn't care either way or because giving me this migraine is part of my sentence as his hand"  
**Samwell**: "I see... Well... That... That's quite unfortunate for you I'm afraid"  
**Tyrion**: "Truth be told I couldn't give less of a shit about it. I've been through enough coronations to be done with them for a lifetime... But at the same time, I don't think a coronation ceremony has ever had the potential to have such a big impact on the well being of an entire city as much as this one could."  
**Davos**: "One option to pease the very poor, one option to pease the very rich... Is there some sort of third option that could meet some sort of happy medium between the two?"  
**Tyrion**: (Shakes head) "For as much thought as I've put into this, the only possibilities I could come up with that are feasible lead to neither side being happy. Not unless anyone in here has any suggestions based on our limited budget?"  
**Bronn**: "What if we put him on tour?"

Before anyone can pitch their own ideas or think of one in the first place, all eyes shift to Bronn, everyone wearing an expression of confusion and disbelief.

**Bronn**: "Long time ago, before I met any of you, this fat fuck named Maddong of the Stormlands contacted me to kill a guy who had fucked his wife. Fuckers name was, something or other, but he was one of those traveling performers who went from town to town doing tricks. The guy was quite good, he did a lot of tricks and stuff to please kids, but he also did three or four really neat things for the adults, and he made a killing. Lords would pay him to come to their town because they could get him for a good price and help calm down the people when things in that kingdom weren't going too well... By sheer luck I found out the guy they trusted to handle their gold was an idiot, so I followed the lot of them around the country taking gold from them every time they performed in a new place. Never took too much for them to notice, but it was just enough to make it worth not killing the guy first chance I got..."

**Samwell**: "Did you ever... Did you kill the man?"

**Bronn**: (Nods) "Eventually a few of them started recognizing me since I was always showing up in towns they performed in... Slit the guy's throat when he was taking a piss, went back to the Stormlands to collect payment, walked in on the guy fucking one of his own nieces... So I killed him, took some shit worth stealing... Was a pretty good 3 months for me in terms of finance..."

**Tyrion**: "So, forgive me, how exactly does this help us?"

**Bronn**: "We can have King Bran go on tour. Lords pay to have the king visit their towns and castles, host a coronation ceremony or whatever in the town square, make the people happy, and the lord pays us a small fortune to make it all happen... If we're lucky, the lord will have some sort of pressing issue they hope the King can settle by taking their side on it... The more pressing the issue, the more they will be willing to pay to have the king visit their land first"

Silence falls in the room as everyone considers the pros and cons of Bronn's option. A few are open to the idea, some are still unsure and undecided.

**Davos**: "The logistics of having the King cross around the country could be a challenge but, it could work"  
**Brienne**: "I don't think we should be using the King as a tool to raise money"  
**Bronn**: "We're not using him as a tool, we're introducing him to the poor people and lesser lords in the realm that would normally be overlooked... And making a lot of coin off of it in the process."  
**Brienne**: "And what about safety? How many lesser lords can we trust with the life of our new king?"  
**Tyrion**: "There are a good amount of lords who aren't entirely thrilled that a Targaryen nor a Lannister nor even a Baratheon sits on the Iron-... I mean, reigns as their new king... Factor in anyone with a grudge against the Starks, and it does become a risk"  
**Bronn**: "Well of course there's risk to it, but there is also risk in running out of coin and not convincing people to support our new king. We cant have him be the Darling of King's landing if we want to keep peace in the seven kingdoms, we need others to-"  
**Davos**: "_Six_ kingdoms"  
**Bronn**: (Rolls his eyes) If we want to keep peace in the SIX kingdoms of the realm, then we need the people in all SIX kingdoms to support the king, not just the people of King's Landing... We need support of the people, and we need coin, this option gives us the both of them"

**Samwell**: "Now that I think about it, with the North being independent and some lords of the more far off kingdoms not wanting to host a coronation ceremony... I don't think the Iron Islands would be very interested... The overall length of the trip may not actually be very long, especially if we plan things carefully and don't revisit the same area twice"

**Bronn**: "We could have it that whichever lord pays the most gets first dibs on the King as well"  
**Brienne**: "Okay NOW you're using the king as just some tool to raise money"  
**Bronn**: "He's not a tool, he's just a person that we happen to be using to carry out a particular function"  
**Davos**: "I think thats the definition of what a tool is"  
**Bronn**: (annoyed) "I thought we were on the same side, me and you"  
**Davos**: "_You and I_"  
**Bronn**: "I'll _punch_ you in the eye if you keep doing that"

**Tyrion**: "Gentlemen please, let's keep our heads. Does anyone else have any suggestions or other options?"

Silence engulfs the room as everyone tries to invent a new option in place of the three that already exist. After a few moments thought, everyone in the room gravitated to one of the ideas already mentioned instead of sink thought into a different way.

**Samwell**: "What do you think?"  
**Tyrion**: "I couldn't care less to be frank"  
**Samwell**: "But if you HAD to choose...?"

**Tyrion**: If I had to choose... (sigh and a pause)... I'll admit that I do like the idea of having Bran travel the country to curry good favor with the people and lords of the realm to unite them... It definitely would earn us some gold, but it is an option I think we should preserve for now... (another pause)... There are a number of other holidays and other events we could use to have the King travel 'on tour' for, to do so right now following all that has happened is too soon in my opinion... I wonder how the people would react when their king leaves the ruined city to try to suck up to wealthy lords of other realms. 'Not well' would be my guess... For the sake of simplicity I lean more towards keeping the King here to curry good favor with the people still in the city, lord knows they deserve to be first in line for all they've suffered."

**Brienne**: (nods) "I agree... Its safer here, we're needed here, and the people have suffered the most here... I vote we stay and help the poor"  
**Tyrion**: "Samwell?"  
**Samwell**: "I, uh... Well... Again, I'm not sure if I should have a say on the matter... But I do think we should remain here for the ceremony... After all, there could be other issues presented to us that we have to handle, it would be more difficult to do so if we are on the other side of the country traveling with the King"  
**Davos**: "While I am open to the idea of having the king travel around the kingdom, perhaps now is indeed not the best time for it"  
**Bronn**: (annoyed) "Well I guess its unanimous then. Have the king stay and help out the poor. Might as well vote yes at this point"  
**Tyrion**: "Then its settled... Bronn will move around what finance we have left to organize the celebration, Brienne you decide where would be the best and safest place for such a celebration to be hosted"  
**Bronn**: "Is there to be financing set aside for the use of prostitutes to attend the celebration?"  
**Brienne**: "Prostit-? This is for _the poor_"  
**Bronn**: "And?... I was poor once in my life, never made me not feel like fuckin every now and then"  
**Tyrion**: "Lets avoid having prostitutes at this celebration"  
**Bronn**: "Pfft... Those are words I never fuckin thought I would hear come out of _your_ mouth Lannister..."


	3. Chapter 3: The Stormlands

Bronn's attendance at Kings Landing's first operational brothel following the downfall of Daenerys went almost as poorly as he could have. Almost roped into an embezzlement scheme, almost soliciting the wrong woman, and a fistfight with a Dothraki horseman left Bronn in a poor state, marooning him to his bed for the next few days. Today's small council would be limited to Tyrion as the hand, Brienne as the Kingsguard, Samwell as the Archmaester, and Davos as the master of ships. The absence of the Master of Coin, as well as the continued absence of a master of war, made the topic for today's discussion all the more problematic, as coin and war specifically relate to it:

Rebellion in the Stormlands.

* * *

The small council, or at least what's present of it today, makes their way into the room and take their seats. The empty seat of Bronn as Master of Coin, among other lofty titles, immediately grips the attention of everyone in the room. Not only had he occupied the entire side of the table opposite Tyrion and everyone else, making his absence blatantly obvious to begin with, his important position as the Master of Coin also made his absence very concerning to the rest of the small council. They wondered if a meeting should even be held without Bronn, but the precariousness of the situation in development made it an issue that had to be dealt with in haste.

**Tyrion**: "Welcome everyone. While I normally enjoy being the one to introduce the topic of discussion to you all, our lord King Bran has entrusted Lady Brienne that liberty for us today..." [Gestures toward Brienne]  
**Brienne**: "King Bran has informed me that, using his... Vision... He has discovered that a rebellion has occurred in the Stormlands against their recently appointed leader, lord Gendry Baratheon... The local elites evidently did not take kindly to their new lord, a bastard, who was named a legitimate son of his father before him and then appointed lord over the Stormlands by Daenerys... So they overthrew him, and are currently installing their own ruler in his place"  
**Samwell**: "How bad is the situation?"  
**Brienne**: "We have no word from Gendry, as we have no master of spies, and the usurpent elite of the Stormlands have secured control of the area for themselves. Their army consists of a variety of soldiers formerly loyal to either Stannis or Renly Baratheon, and it may take nothing short of a full siege and assault to restore Gendry to power"  
**Davos**: "... Im sorry, what does 'usurpent' mean?"  
**Tyrion**: "I believes it means something along the lines of 'people who have recently overthrown someone', if I had to define it."

**Samwell**: "Actually, if we are using the past-perfect-tense conjugation of the word 'usurp', then the correct version of the word in this case would be to say that the 'usurped' elite of the Stormlands have taken control, as they've accomplished their goal... But if you want to stick to the narrative that they are still in the process of overthrowing their ruler, then you would have to use the past-perfect-continuous conjugation of the word, which would be saying that the 'usurping' elite of the Stormlands now rule the realm"

[Awkward smile from Samwell combined with an awkward silence in the room]

**Davos**: "... Forgive me... What does 'conjugation' mean?"

[Awkward smile from Samwell fades away as he realizes his attempted explanation has only led to even more confusion]

**Tyrion**: "Anyways... As mentioned, the elites in the region have overthrown Gendry, currently missing, and have also taken up defenses in both Dragonstone and Storms End... Very strong castles now well defended by men who know the castles as well as the land and waters around it... Unfortunately for us, we are rather strapped in terms of military power at the moment. The Starks' army has returned north to their own independent lands, the Lannister army has, 'seen better days' to put it lightly... The Unsullied have sailed back to Essos and the Dothraki aren't very eager to sail anywhere even if there is a fight involved"

**Davos**: "Talk about being up shit's creek without a paddle... Do we know what the demands of these rebellious elites and their new leader are?"  
**Tyrion**: [Looks at Brienne]  
**Brienne**: "King Bran has not revealed if he knows the motivations of the usurpurs, he has only mentioned..."

[long pause]

**Samwell**: "What is it?"  
**Brienne**: "He only mentioned a single name when I asked for additional details... He just said the name 'Harbert'... It was the only thing clear to him"  
**Davos**: "Harbert?... I know him"  
**Tyrion**: "I've only heard it once or twice, but not much else... What do you know about him?"  
**Davos**: "Harbert Baratheon is Stannis's great uncle... Great uncle of Stannis, great uncle of Renly, great uncle of Robert himself... He was related to Steffon Baratheon and Aerys Targaryen himself as a cousin, though there was some mystery about whether he was a true relative of either branch or a possible bastard"  
**Brienne**: "Was...? I take it he is dead then"  
**Davos**: "He passed away a couple of months before Robert Baratheon did... Some sort of stomach infection from what Stannis mentioned"  
**Samwell**: "Well if the man is dead then how can he be relevant to what's going on today?"

**Davos**: "With Stannis and Robert and Renly Baratheon all deceased, leaving know true heirs to their names, then the bearer of the Baratheon name would refer back to the lineage of Harbert since he had some relation to both the Targaryen branch and the Baratheon Branch... If Harbert had fathered a child old enough to hold a claim to the Baratheon name, then he would have a stronger claim for power over a bastard son of a dead king like Gendry..."

**Brienne**: "A claim for power over the Baratheon house and all its territory?"  
**Tyrion**: "Not just the Stormlands... If this new leader is part Targaryen and part Baratheon, he could hold a claim for power over all of Westeros..."

A worried silence hung in the air as everyone came to the realization that the fragile peace earned from such a terrible price could be put in jeopardy by the son of an old ghost... The Baratheon branch is known for their poor attitudes, their slogan is 'Ours is the Fury' as if having a temper is their calling card. If one were to get it in their head that they have a claim to rule over Westeros, and should pursue such a claim to avenge Robert Baratheon before them, it could make war impossible to avoid.

**Tyrion**: [Trying to calm everyone down] "There are still many things we do not know about the situation... We do not know if Harbert's child is the benefactor of the rebellion, we do not know if they have taken Gendry as prisoner, exiled him, or if he's dead, we do not know what they want or what they think they can achieve... In situations like this when we still know so little, the best strategy is to hope for the best, but plan for the worst... The worst case scenario of course being a pressing of a claim for the throne..."  
**Davos**: "Should we hear that a fleet of Baratheon soldiers are on their way to King's Landing, who could we call as allies? Who could the Baratheons call as allies?"  
**Tyrion**: "What does our history expert believe?"  
**Samwell**: "... Oh, um... Well, if I had to guess... [long pause]... The Starks are independent, The Lannisters and Highgarden are on our side, the Dothraki in the city could be convinced to fight for us... My immediate concern would be the Eyrie"  
**Davos**: [Tsks] "Of course..."  
**Brienne**: "Why the Eyrie? I'm afraid that their house is one of those I know little about"

**Samwell**: "Robert's Rebellion began when the Mad King called for Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon to be sent to King's Landing after he had Rickard Stark and Brandon Stark burned alive and strangled without trial. The request was refused by the person who had been fostering Eddard and Robert at the time: Jon Arryn of the Eyrie... The Eyrie and the Baratheon's were the ones who helped bring down the Targaryens from power last time, they could call on their old friends again to press a claim if they felt they had one..."

**Tyrion**: "With the Starks independent to the north and the other remaining houses either at not optimal strength or not optimal loyalty, an alliance between the Baratheons and the Eyrie could bring us all down fairly quickly, even if we did muster all available strength from the remaining houses... Highgarden has never been known for its fighters, my house is in ruin, the Iron Islands are not very loyal to us at the moment, and Dorne is... Well, Dorne..."

**Davos**: "It sounds like since we can't beat them in a fight, our best option is to appease them as best we can"

**Tyrion**: [Nodding] "That is our _first_ option, yes... We have been caught with our pants around our ankles so to speak... We have no master of war and no formidable army, no master of spies or sources of insight, trying to fight with them would end very poorly and very quickly for all of us. For this option, we would basically be asking for a list of demands from the usurpurs to see what they want and attempt to reach some sort of agreement with them to pacify their interests, assuming they have some desires we are willing to grant them at all... If we try to appease them though, it would immediately be viewed as a sign of weakness and could incline them even more into trying to take what they think they could get, if not everything."

**Brienne**: "What are our other options?"  
**Tyrion**: "The other option is to stall them"  
**Samwell**: "Stall them?"  
**Tyrion**: [nods] "If we recognize their rule as official, rather then label them as enemy rebels, they become immediately preoccupied with building up their own legitimacy under their new lord, whomever they may be, over their subjects and lands they now legitimately rule."  
**Davos**: "Well it sounds to me like we don't have much ability to dispute who rules over the Stormlands... Whats the downside to legitimizing them?"  
**Samwell**: "Historically speaking, when a rebellion or a rebel lord is granted legitimacy over whichever title they are trying to take, then they also get legitimacy over all other claims to titles that they also have, which in this case could include a claim over rulership of all of Westeros..."  
**Brienne**: "So we can try to appease them, and hope they don't decide to kill us all... We can try to stall them by legitimizing their rebellion, which could then legitimize their choice to kill us all... Do we have any third option that doesn't lead to us dying?"

**Tyrion**: "Our third option is to send an ultimatum... Demand that Gendry Baratheon be reinstalled as ruler of the Stormlands assuming he's not dead in a ditch, demand that the conspirers end their treason and pledge their loyalty to King Bran in exchange for their lives, and demand that the leader of their rebellion surrender all claims to any titles in the Stormlands and over Westeros..."

**Brienne**: "Which they could refuse and decide to kill us all"  
**Tyrion**: [nods] "I brought up the extra strength wine from my own collection if anyone wants some"

**Davos**: [Immediately reaches for a goblet and pours himself a full glass]  
**Samwell**: [Hesitantly reaches for a goblet and pours himself a third of a glass]  
**Brienne**: [Doesn't move an inch]

**Tyrion: **"My two cents, or whatever it's worth these days, is that although stalling them through legitimacy sounds like our best bet, we should go for appeasement instead. I believe we should roll over and try to give them what they want"  
**Brienne**: [Almost in disgust] "Based on what?"  
**Tyrion**: "If we legitimize a rebellion, and Samwell can back me up on this one, it sends a message out to everyone in Westeros that a person who has a claim on a title can pursue it without immediately being branded as an enemy of the crown... Anyone who has a claim on Highgarden, on Dorne, on the Eyrie, on the Iron Islands, could press their claim with the belief that their revolt could be viewed as legitimate. Almost every time a rebellion was granted legitimacy, a number of smaller ones sprang up around the country by ambitious men seeking to claim power, which overall weakened the kingdom and peace in general. Isn't that correct Sam?"

**Sam**: [Nods while trying to drink wine, accidentally spilling some of it on himself due to its strong taste]  
**  
Tyrion**: "While giving them an ultimatum to stand down almost certainly results in war breaking out, that war is at least kept between Kings Landing and the Stormlands... Granting legitimacy to their rebellion in an attempt to stall them could avoid a war between us two, but would certainly cause unrest in every kingdom in Westeros by showing that we can accept rebellions against other lords as legitimate... Appeasement, our first option, puts us in quite a position of weakness but has the best odds of containing the outbreak of conflict, as least for right now... As much as my father would hate me for saying this, I believe that rolling over and hoping for mercy is our best bet, because the other two options lead to a war we will probably lose, and rebellions popping up around Westeros."

A long pause envelops the room as the other 3 present members of the small council weigh the options. For the first time, almost no option seemed like a good option worth pursuing, leading Brienne to forge her own solution:

**Brienne**: "I propose we do nothing"  
**Tyrion**: [Confusion]  
**Samwell**: [Confusion + nervous drinking]  
**Davos**: "Nothing?"  
**Brienne**: "Yes, nothing... Lets wait for additional information before deciding how to act and see if we gain any insights before making a decision... See if the rebel leaders send us a list of demands, a message asking for negotiations to preserve peace, or their army looking for a fight"  
**Tyrion**: "Thats not so much as us making a decision later, but instead allowing the rebel leaders to make that decision for us, in addition to having a head start on the affair in the first place"  
**Brienne**: "We don't know enough to make a decision on the matter, so lets wait to get more information and then make a decision"  
**Tyrion**: "There's no guarantee we will get more information before we have time to make a decision, nor is there a guarantee we will even be able to make a decision in the future... I know our options are, to put it bluntly, quite shit, but I believe it is better to select my own shit then have someone else select the shit for me."

**Brienne**: "I've worked for the Baratheons. They are a house of honor and strength who would-"  
**Tyrion**: "They burned their own daughters and slaughtered their own brothers. With blood magic"  
**Brienne**: "-Honor and strength who would try to avoid a war if they had a rational belief that it could be avoided"  
**Tyrion**: "Their words are 'Ours is the Fury' and are known for their tempers."  
**Brienne**: "Stannis is not the representative of House Baratheon"  
**Tyrion**: "Neither was Renly"  
**Samwell**: "If I may have a word...?"

Tyrion and Brienne fire glares at each other for a few more moments before they both relax and turn their attention to Samwell, welcoming his input

**Samwell**: "There are at least 4 periods in history where major rebellions beget smaller and lesser rebellions after being granted legitimacy from a higher source. If maintaining peace in the realm is our top priority... As well as... You know... Not having our heads get cut off... Then I think rolling over and trying to appease them is actually our best bet... We don't know who we are dealing with or what they want, so we should try to hear them out and see if we can reach some sort of agreement"

**Tyrion**: [Nods at Sam]  
**Brienne**: [Irritated] "I suppose its Davos's turn to vote"

**Davos**: "Yes... Well... While I understand where you both are coming from, the plain truth is that we still do not know who is now in control of the Stormlands... It is not Harbert Baratheon who upholds the Baratheon house, it is his heir... The ghost of a man now long dead who we know _nothing_ about in the slightest... While giving them an ultimatum to stand down at once is a fools errand, and granting them legitimacy can cause problems in other kingdoms, there is still too little known to make a decision... For that reason, I do believe that we should wait until we get more information before making a decision, so I will side with Brienne on this matter"

**Brienne**: [Pleasantly surprised but tries to hide it]  
**Tyrion**: [Reaches for another glass of wine]  
**Brienne**: "Well, seeing as how we are deadlocked between rolling over and doing nothing, I suppose our only option is to wait for the return of our Master of Coin to break the-"  
**Tyrion**: [Not even looking at anyone before taking a sip of his wine]: "Samwell, you have something on your mind?"

Attention in the room immediately shifts over to Sam, who is staring at the goblet of wine he has barely sipped from. His expression has changed to a more sullen and reflective one as he ponders over his feelings... It is only after a long pause that Samwell finally gains the courage to speak, as if admitting to a dirty lie from his past that has long haunted him and made him feel guilty.

**Samwell**: "When I was at the Citadel, one of the biggest lessons I remember getting from the other maesters was how 'terrible' it is for there to be a blank in history... For there to not be an answer to a question... There are many parts of history we know very little about, and there are parts that are so outlandish and impractical that its impossible for them to be the truth in the first place... But when we can only choose between ignorance and outlandishness, history always goes for outlandishness... Some of the earliest tales we have of the Andals and the first Dragons and the earliest ancestors that we accept as historical truth are so unbelievable that if you look at it objectively, you realize it's all lies..."

He pauses for a second and shakes his head, trying to stay on track

**Samwell**: "What I mean is, history has a _bias_ against 'nothing'... In history, the belief has been that it's always better to have some sort of outlandish thing in place as an explanation for something, rather than leave it as a blank. Looking at the decision we have today, we have to choose again between doing something outlandish, and doing nothing. The outlandish though can sometimes have worse effects than admitting to knowing nothing... It's argued that most of the great wars that first took place were all built on misunderstandings of how the world worked. Fire Gods and Water Gods and Earth Gods and Sky Gods and whatnot... What war could break out if we roll over to this lord we know nothing about? What future problems could be caused by this person we know so little of gaining legitimacy following a rebellion in such a brief time?... Things could work out well if we roll over and try to appease them, but its equally likely that something far worse happens in the long term if we do so... Doing nothing in the face of evil begets more evil, but doing nothing in the face of the unknown could also mitigate the effects of evil as well by avoiding possible confrontation-"

**Tyrion**: "Do you wish to change your vote Sam?"

Having downed his entire goblet of potent wine in the time Samwell has talked, Tyrion casually looks over at Samwell with a relaxed look on his face. If it had to be described, it looked like an expression of understanding and forgiveness.

Without saying a word, Samwell nods and breaks eye contact from Tyrion, looking down at the table and pretending to be interested in the many lines meandering across it. Even though he doesn't voice which option he flips to, Tyrion understands perfectly well his new allegiance.

**Tyrion**: "With three votes and a current majority, we rule in favor of doing nothing until more information is known about the situation. We agree to revisit this decision at a future time once more is known, and then making a decision based on that when the time comes. Brienne, you may inform the king of our decision since you were the one he told of the situation in the first place."

With a slight smile and a raising of his empty goblet, the council is dismissed. Davos and Samwell quietly make their way towards the exit, eager to handle the other affairs they have to attend to, while Brienne lags behind a moment. Taking in all that had just happened, she struggles to conceal her emotion as she takes pride in her invented solution being adopted by the small council as their decision. Maybe she has a knack for this state-crafting thing after all and would not be dismissed as a glorified body-guard like so many other Kingsguard were before her. As she turns to exit, she comes to a stop at the door and the smile vanishes from her face, as she realizes one nagging detail of what had just transpired reveal a shocking truth behind it.

Whipping around to see Tyrion still at his seat, pouring another glass of wine, she takes a half step back into the chamber and closes the door slightly.

**Brienne**: "You knew..."  
**Tyrion**: "Knew what?"  
**Brienne**: "You knew he was going to change his vote at the last moment"  
**Tyrion**: "Well thats nothing particularly challenging to do, anyone could learn how to-"

**Brienne**: "You knew he would change his vote, but he originally voted for _your_ option... Rather then let me end the meeting and have Bronn be the tie-breaker, you delayed it so that Samwell could change his vote to my option and end the matter"

**Tyrion**: [After quite a long pause] "... I had a suspicion..."  
**Brienne**: "Why? Why would you stall for time when you knew doing so would mean you would lose?"  
**Tyrion**: "Two reasons... One, it's not about losing or beating someone else... You're a fellow advisor, not an enemy or political opponent... My goal is to get what is best for the kingdom by working with people who know what I don't, so I wanted to hear Sam's opinion and see which option he wanted to support instead... And two... Did you notice the face that he made? When Davos sided with you and you tried to wrap things up?"

**Brienne**: [Shakes her head]

**Tyrion**: "He made a look that... It's difficult to describe... You know those conversations between multiple people where, you're listening to two people go back and forth about something, and you have something you want to throw in that you think would deepen the conversation and make you more included, but then the conversation shifts to something else before you can jump in and now you never get to say what you wanted to say?"

**Brienne**: [Nods after a brief delay, knowing exactly what he's referring to]

**Tyrion**: [Points at Samwell's empty seat] "He had that look... He thought of something he wanted to add to the conversation, but then he became let-down that the topic appeared to have wrapped up before he could say what he wanted to say... If he felt it was something that would convince you to join my side, he would have said it in a last ditch effort to change one of your minds, since he has done that in the past when he genuinely believes in something... But this time he held back... He was reluctant... People hesitate more towards admitting their own mistakes then when it comes to fighting for what you believe in, so I thought he was having second thoughts about his vote after hearing what Davos said... Rather then have him live with that regret, which could cause him to do something rash in a future discussion, I went ahead and made him have his say, even if it was at my own detriment"

Brienne takes a few more steps closer to Tyrion, still suspicious.

**Brienne**: "But you still don't think that doing nothing is the best option, and that your option was a better pick... Why give up on what _you_ believe is right just so that someone else could do what _they_ believe is right?"  
**Tyrion**: "Do you know what some of the last decisions I convinced Daenerys to do were?"  
**Brienne**: [Shakes her head]  
**Tyrion**: "In order, they were to have the Unsullied attack Casterly Rock, rely on Highgarden and Dorne to attack Kings Landing, not fly to save Jon Snow when he and his friends were trapped by white walkers north of the wall, believe that my sister and the Lannister army would join her forces to fight the undead at Winterfell, and that Varys committed treason and had to be disciplined... All of those, in hindsight, were truly _terrible_ decisions to make. Several months went by without me having a good idea while I was her hand... If history has taught me anything, its that sometimes not doing what I think is best is the best thing to do... Hopefully, this is one of those times"

Satisfied with his answer, Brienne lets go of the idea that Tyrion may be playing some sort of mind game on her as she initially suspected. It does make sense now that it's all out in the open. As much as Tyrion tries to do what he thinks is right based on his incredible knowledge, his decisions have often bit him in the ass and led to disastrous results. Learning that what he thinks is not always right, while being kind enough to encourage Samwell to state his feelings, they both adequately explain why he did what he did, even if it appeared to be at his own detriment...

**Brienne**: [Slightly nods at Tyrion out of respect] "I look forward to our next meeting"  
**Tyrion**: [Raises his goblet that now has wine in it again] "As do I"

As Brienne opens the door and walks out, Tyrion speaks up one last time.

**Tyrion**: "Lady Brienne"  
**Brienne**: [Pauses]  
**Tyrion**: "Do continue to come up with your own options more often, it just might save us all"  
**Brienne**: [Slight smile] "I'll do my best"

With that, she closes the door behind him, leaving Tyrion in the small council chamber by himself with the remaining 2/5ths of wine in the bottle. He takes a sip of the wine, sours his face a little, and inspects it.

_Why does every new kind of wine I try always taste like piss the first three times I try it?_ He thinks to himself.


	4. Chapter 4: The Master of Whisperers

Official word from the Stormlands sent only to Kings Landing did not reveal any information that Bran had not already revealed earlier that week. Rebellion in the Stormlands, Dragonstone and Storms End occupied and defended, Gendry's fate unknown, and no information on demands or goals of the elites who took over... However, there was one curious aspect of the development that threw off even Tyrion once the small council learned about it... Rather then send a declaration or list of demands or goals, the new regime in the Stormlands indicated they were sending a messenger to the ruins of King's Landing to negotiate with them.

Negotiate over what was anyone's guess.

* * *

**Bronn**: "So wait, we don't know what they want, yet they're here to negotiate over their demands anyways?"  
**Tyrion**: "It is unconventional to say the least, but then again, the usurped elite have done a number of things unconventionally already, this is rather in character for them"  
**Bronn**: "... The fuck does 'usurped' mean?"  
**Davos**: "Don't ask..."  
**Brienne**: "I should be there... I should be with him..."

The negotiator, whoever they were, had requested an audience with King Bran in private upon arriving at the Red Keep. The request immediately alarmed everyone in the room, but Bran was not concerned and agreed to the conditions, much to the angst of Brienne, who fell into a constant state of worry from the moment news reached her ears. If the negotiator had any bad intentions, Bran would be defenseless to stop them, and his death could quickly plunge the kingdom into anarchy. Tyrion quickly reasoned that if Bran was okay with it, he probably already knew it would turn out fine, but many member of the small council still had their worries, Brienne having the most.

**Samwell**: "Maybe they have heard of Bran's powers and just want some insight into some sort of personal problem..."  
**Davos**: "Whatever theory we could come up with, its all just worthless guessin'... All we can do is wait"  
**Bronn**: "We don't have any idea what they could want? Why would they send a negotiator to negotiate terms we don't know about?"  
**Tyrion**: (Shakes his head) "Their mysterious ways of doing things make their motivations equally so. At this point it would be better to come up with things we are prepared to not budge on"  
**Samwell**: "How would that help us?"  
**Bronn**: "When dealing with some fucker you know nothing about who is robbing you, its handy to know what you're prepared to give up to them to save your skin, and what you're prepared to fight to the death to keep"  
**Samwell**: "And what would those things be?"  
**Davos**: "Off the top of my head, any surrender to a new king of the Stormlands is a big one"  
**Tyrion**: "Any sort of gold tribute to maintaining peace or a request to join a bigger war would also be a non-starter"  
**Bronn**: "Hah! If they demand a gold tribute, I'll tell him he can suck my fat d-"

The door opens, and Sir Podrick stands at the door, very upright with his other hand behind his back.

**Podrick**: "The small council, my lady"

Into the council chambers walks the negotiator sent from the Stormlands, a woman of above average height, maybe 5'8" or 5'9", she had slightly wavy brown hair that went down to her shoulders with two braids behind her ears combining into one in the back. She had brown eyes, sharp eyebrows, a small nose, and a soft jawline. Most surprising of all though was her fairly dark complexion. She could easily pass as someone from Dorne based on how tan her skin was. Nearly everyone in the room was surprised and intimidated by her appearance, the exception being Bronn, who immediately became aroused.

She takes a seat next to the end of the table opposite Tyrion, across from Brienne, leaving an empty chair between her and Bronn, who turned in his seat as if admiring the view.

**Tyrion**: "Well... Uhh... Welcome, to Kings Landing... Madam...?"  
**Her**: "Tyrion Lannister..." she interrupts "...It's a pleasure to finally meet you, I've heard much about you and your journeys over the past couple of years"  
**Tyrion**: "Ah, yes... Its been, quite interesting to say the least... Madam...?"  
**Her**: "Forgive me, allow me to introduce myself... My name is Lara Baratheon, formerly Lara Lonmouth of House Lonmouth"  
**Davos**: "House Lonmouth... Your words are 'The Choice Is Yours'... correct?"  
**Lara**: "The onion knight... You are correct Lord Davos"  
**Tyrion**: "Welcome to Kings Landing, what's left of it. Shall we get down to business?"  
**Lara**: "You have many questions I imagine. Questions that your insightful king have not yet revealed to you. Hopefully I can answer some of-"

**Bronn**: "And I am the master of coin, Sir Bronn of the Blackwater!... Lord of Highgarden, Lord Paramount of the Reach. It is lovely to meet you miss Lara"

The rest of the council glares at Bronn, who is oblivious to their anger and instead is fixated on Lara. Lara is thrown off and confused by his out of place introduction. She glances around at the other council members, gauging their reaction to deduce if this is normal behavior from Bronn.

**Lara**: "Its... Its nice to meet you to"  
**Bronn**: "So you've heard of me? Suppose its not a surprise, me and him were inseparable for the longest time"

Lara glances at Tyrion who Bronn gestured towards. Trying to fight between a polite smile and a look of pure confusion, she tries to put an end to the conversation

**Lara**: "I'm sorry I'm afraid that I haven't heard about you. I was aware that there was a new lord of Highgarden not from one of the lower houses, but I don't know much about you"  
**Bronn**: "Want to fix that?"

Brienne had enough. "Why are you here?"

Lara whips her head away from Bronn to stare directly across the table to Brienne, one part relieved to be back on track, one part surprised at the forcefulness of the question.

**Lara**: "Lady Brienne, an honor to meet you. I am here as a representative of my husband, Sigmond Baratheon, the new lord of the Stormlands, master of Storms End and Dragonstone... He is the only surviving son of Harbert Baratheon, great Uncle of Robert Baratheon, Stannis, and Renly Baratheon..."

**Tyrion**: "I thank you for coming all this way. Tell me, before we go further, what is the current state of the last person appointed to rule over the Stormlands, Gendry Baratheon?"  
**Lara**: "He is here in Kings Landing being watched by several guards. We are prepared to turn him over once our two main demands are met"  
**Brienne**: "You shall turn him over at once as a gesture of good faith if you want these negotiations to continue"  
**Tyrion**: (Visibly worried) "We can work out how to-"  
**Brienne**: "Gendry could not have been in the Stormlands longer than three months before you overthrew him, he is a good, honorable person and a hero of the Battle of Winterfell. His release should come immediately before we continue"  
**Tyrion**: "Brienne is very concerned about Gendry as you can tell, I'm sure we can sort-"  
**Lara**: "No no, its alright. I recall hearing about how Lady Brienne rose through the ranks and became the protector of Renly Baratheon. If she strongly insists that he be released at once, then it will be done"

Brienne gives a slight nod and a smirk so small that anyone could miss it. She relaxes back into her chair a bit more before glancing at Tyrion in a 'I-know-what-Im-doing' gesture, who in turn glances back with a 'Okay-but-please-dont-do-that-again' expression.

**Davos**: "You said that there are two demands the new lord of the Stormlands has. What are they?"  
**Lara**: "He had many more than two demands at first, but I convinced him to reign himself in under the belief that his more aggressive demands would be rejected and met with force from the combined strengths of 5 remaining kingdoms... His first main demand is that his claim over the Stormlands be granted legitimacy, making him the official lord of the re-, I mean official lord the Stormlands."  
**  
Tyrion**: "That puts us in a rather difficult situation... Should we legitimize his rebellion as official, it would send word out to all the realm that other rebellions could gain legitimacy in the eyes of the king, undermining the fragile peace we hold."

**Samwell**: "Such instances have happened many times in the past after major rebellions were upheld as legitimate by the respective Kings of the time"  
**Lara**: "I understand that it puts you in a difficult situation, but to be fair, there is no way you can challenge Sigmond Baratheon's rule over the Stormlands and reinstall Gendry as the lord... With no master of war and no army, we could theoretically hold the region for a century with relative ease..."  
**Davos**: "A call to arms from our bannermen would not make it easy. A naval blockade around the Stormlands-"  
**Lara**: "Is your navy one of your own or do you still depend on the Iron Islands for your navy? As good as they are at building ships, you of all people should know how easy it is to get in and out of the Stormlands around whoever the current enemy is"  
**Davos**: "As the master of ships, I could easily point out where those spots are and make sure to keep them under a close eye."  
**Lara**: "True, if you have enough ships and the loyalty of the men on them... Would it be worth it though just to dispute the rule of Sigmond Baratheon? A man who has a legitimate claim on the Stormlands and not appointed by some mad Queen?"

**Tyrion**: "Maybe we are, maybe we aren't. Tell us more about this Sigmond Baratheon. I'm afraid I don't know much about him"

Lara, for the first time, breaks eye contact and looks down at the table. She bites her lip and swallows, while crossing her legs underneath the table. Only Tyrion, Davos, and Brienne pick up these subtle clues. Samwell is not good at reading body language while Bronn still is staring into Lara's eyes.

**Lara**: "For the sake of fair negotiations I have a duty to be honest, it would be improper to mislead you... Sigmond has a temper. He is irrational and stubborn, the kind of person who listens to those whose opinions only reinforces his own rather than what would be best for himself or the realm. He would like to get every soldier he has and march on Kings Landing, but I strongly advised against doing so"  
**Brienne**: "Why?"  
**Lara**: "The Baratheon men do not do well when they pursue the throne... Robert died while holding it, Renly killed for seeking it, Stannis the same... I think only the Starks could claim to do poorer when their men go to Kings Landing compared to the Baratheons, I would prefer a similar fate not happen to my husband"  
**Brienne**: "Why admit he is a fairly terrible person then? Why marry him?"  
**Lara**: "Those are two very different questions... In short, I admit he's problematic out of good faith to everyone in this room, and I married him because it was a good opportunity for me"

**Tyrion**: "Lets get back on track here... You mentioned there were just two demands that Sigmond Baratheon made. If the first demand is a motion of legitimacy towards his rule, what is the other?"

Lara straightens up and relaxes a little, growing more confident as she faces Tyrion

**Lara**: "Sigmond's other demand is less one of his personal desires and more one of mine... You have an open spot on the council for your Master of Whisperers, I would like to be appointed to the position"

Everyone in the room is very surprised at such a demand, it's equally unexpected and conventional. Not only had none of them thought this negotiator from the Stormlands was even interested in the position, it is unconventional for a position on the small council to be requested as part of negotiations for a conflict. Normally candidates are brought in and interviewed/interrogated before being granted the position, this was far out of the ordinary even compared to everything else that has happened so far"

**Tyrion**: "... That might be more of a problem than your first demand... Tell me, for starters, how could we even be sure that your loyalty lies more with our King than your own husband?"  
**Brienne**: "You could easily feed sensitive information to your brother to try to undermine us and make it easier for him to siege Kings landing"  
**Lara**: "I want more than anything else for my husband to _NOT_ march his troops towards the city. I already lied to him by saying that King Bran could call for troops from the other kingdoms and assemble a force we could not defeat, and I will keep doing so if it means maintaining peace."  
**Davos**: "Why then does he want you to be the master of spies if he knows you're just going to feed him lies then?"  
**Lara**: "He doesn't know. He thinks that by me being here I will do the exact thing you all worry about and feed him information I discover, but my intent is to do the exact opposite... Mislead him as much as I have to in order to preserve peace"

**Tyrion**: "You do realize that the only way we can believe that is to just trust your word, correct? Im afraid we will not be able to appoint you to the council just by asking we have faith you are telling the truth"

**Lara**: "I know full well you would not appoint me just by having faith that I am telling the truth, thats why I'm hoping my witness would be able to convince you instead"  
**Brienne**: "And who might be this witness of yours?"  
**Lara**: "Your lord... King Bran..."

Almost as if on queue, the door to the small council chambers open and Sir Podrick wheels in King Bran. Everyone stands at attention immediately as Bran is wheeled to the very end of the table, across from Tyrion and right next to Brienne and Lara

**Bran**: "Getting familiar with each other?"  
**Tyrion**: "We are my king. We were just working out the demands from Madam Lara"  
**Lara**: "You were right that I would not succeed without your assistance, my king..."  
**Bran**: "It doesnt take magic to see that coming. Be seated"

Everyone take their seat and scoots in all the way. Everyone sits very upright and keeps their hands folded on the table.

**Tyrion**: "My lord, are you here to reassure us that Lara would be a good fit for your master of spies?"  
**Bran**: "I am. I believe she can be trusted"  
**Brienne**: "How can you be so sure? Not to doubt you or think that-"  
**Bran**: "Its alright. You are concerned is all"... He turns his attention to Lara "Do you want to tell them or shall I?"  
**Lara**: "I suppose they will listen to you more than me"

He nods, and then turns his attention back to the council.

**Bran**: "When I met with Lara in private, I knew beforehand she had good intentions and wanted to preserve peace, but that was all I could see from her. For all I can see in the past, it is difficult to know everything when there are places you do not think to look. We talked, and Lara told me about herself, revealing information I can confirm by looking deep into the past using her guidance."

He pauses, making sure everyone is listening intently. Even Bronn has broken his gaze off of Lara and pays full attention to Bran

**Bran**: "Lara had a brother growing up, who was a cripple. An accident suffered at birth, his legs were deformed and could not be used. Lara cared for her younger brother as well as she could, even though both her mother and father wanted to leave him in the forest to die... She loved her brother more than anything else in the world... He was kind, and bright, and compassionate, even in the faces of those who thought he was nothing more than a weakling... When Robert Baratheon died and the War of the Five Kings began, House Lonmouth and its people was divided over who to side with. Fighting between neighbors and even families broke out, and House Lonmouth paid a steep price"

Looking over at Lara, who is still holding it together, Bran tries to be as delicate as possible.

**Bran**: "While Lara and her family were loyal to Renly, most others in their realm were loyal to Stannis. In the dead of night, their home was lit on fire by men loyal to Stannis. Lara and her parents barely made it out alive since they were sleeping, but they could not save Leon... Her parents had to restrain Lara from sprinting back into the house, into the fire, to try to rescue him. They had to restrain her almost all night, until the house was burned down to ashes..."

He looks back at the council, many of them emotionally-moved by his testimony.

**Bran**: "Lara has more of a reason than anyone to want to preserve peace, she has seen what happens to families when war breaks out, how it destroys them... Lara has more of a reason than anyone to protect the very weakest, she has seen that they are often the first victims in conflict... She has come here now to do both of those things, protect peace and the weak... Her life's journey has been preparation for this role, and I have full faith that she will fulfill it should you choose to have her"

Everyone glances over at Lara and sees that, while mostly remaining composed, her eyes have become very red and she is blinking at a profuse rate. Based on the testimony, even the most skeptical members of the small council now felt pity for Lara and were re-evaluating their thinking. A very long pause of unbroken silence hangs over the room for almost a full half-minute before anyone speaks.

**Bran**: "I am going to go now, I have said all that has needed to be said"

Podrick, looking as grim as everyone else in the room, immediately strolls over behind Bran and wheels him away from the table before turning him around towards the door. Tyrion stands up out of his chair along with everyone else and leads a saying of 'Long live the King', but the timing is a bit off and it comes off quite messy. The door closes as they leave, and they remain the only ones in the room.

Everyone takes their seats and tries to relax a bit, knowing much more now then they did just moments earlier.

**Davos**: "I think its safe to say that no one doubts where your allegiance lies... Now that just leaves the matter of legitimizing the rebellion"  
**Bronn**: (Nods)  
**Tyrion**: "Is there any way to preserve peace with the Stormlands if we do not grant legitimacy to your husbands rebellion?"  
**Lara**: "I-... Not really... No..." She stammers, still trying to fully compose herself... "Sigmond will take it as a personal insult if he does not have his rule certified as legitimate. He will consider it a stain to be seen as just a usurper rather then the rightful heir and ruler of the Stormlands. As pointless as it seems since he already has full control, being seen as legitimate is very important to him, and he will not forgive anyone who slights him in this way"  
**Tyrion**: "Sam, you've been quiet, have anything you want to say?"

**Samwell**: "Me? Oh, no no... Well... Actually... I had a thought that... If we do decide to grant legitimacy to the rebellion, I was just thinking that maybe when we send word out to the other houses about the development, we could word it in a way to make it seem like... Like this was meant to happen, or something"  
**Davos**: "How do you mean?"  
**Samwell**: "Well... Sigmond's claim on the Stormlands comes from his father Harbert... His lineage is partly questionable as a Baratheon since he is not from the main branch of the family... If we were to tell a small fib that Harbert was more legitimate than previously thought, and has more legitimacy to his name than Gendry, then we could phrase the rebellion not as a forceful seizure of power by a usurper, but instead as a quick transition of power to the rightful ruler based on newly uncovered information"

**Bronn**: "You mean fake it that this Sigmund guy was suppose to be the right ruler all along based on some new document or something you found?"  
**Samwell**: "Basically, yeah... If we can make it seem like the Stormlands truly should have belonged to Sigmund all along, rather then him having a weak claim on power using force to seize it, then other possible rebels with weak claims on power could still be viewed as not legitimate should they rebel, since this one case with the Stormlands has more legitimacy behind it."

Tyrion turned to Lara. "Do you think that you and our Archmaester could fabricate this evidence that Sigmund was the rightful ruler of the Stormlands?"

**Lara**: "Shouldn't be too much of a challenge at all"  
**Tyrion**: "All right then. You will be accepted as the new master of whisperers for the small council, and your first job will be to work with Sam to fabricate or discover evidence of Harbert Baratheons legitimacy as a member of the Baratheon branch. Whatever you put together or find, we shall use that to defend Sigmund as the new legitimate ruler of the Stormlands... All in favor?"

**Bronn**: "Aye!"  
**Samwell**: "Aye"  
**Davos**: "Aye"  
**Brienne**: "Once Gendry is released from your custody, I will vote aye"  
**Lara**: "It will be done at once"


	5. Chapter 5: The Unsullied

With Lara Baratheon, the newly appointed Master of Whisperers, traveling around the kingdom to establish new connections, the remainder of the small council were again left to their own devices to sort out the pressing situations they faced. As the city quietly continued to rebuild itself under the watchful eye of King Bran, it was far off affairs in distant lands that once again demanded the attention of the small council.

The unsullied were facing annihilation.

* * *

The small council walk in and take their seats in their respective chairs. It was never decided who would sit where, everyone just gravitated towards their same seats as always. Bronn and the empty seat of Lady Lara sat on one side of the table, while Davos, Brienne, and Samwell sat across on the other side. Tyrion, as always, sat at the head of the table.

**Tyrion**: "Morning everyone"

Everyone nods or replies once they are seated, except for Bronn, who is nursing a substantial hangover from the previous nights festivities which involved but were not limited to: Four teeth knocked out of someone's mouth because of a carrot argument, a very confused sheep, three bouts of vomiting caused by overly-salted foods, and a whore with only one ear and one eye.

**Tyrion**: "I wanted to start off today with a quiz... It's very simple, only two questions long."  
**Bronn**: "How many free passes do I get?"  
**Tyrion**: (Ignores him) "First question, who has heard of the Island of Naath?"

(Everyone but Bronn raises their hands)

**Tyrion**: "Oh, wonderful, you all already know about the Island and how its people are extremely voted to peace. Okay, second question, why has the Island of Naath never been forcefully conquered?"

(Nobody raises their hand at first, but after a pause Davos takes a guess)

**Davos**: "I've heard stories, old sailor tails, that the reason the island has never been conquered is because of some mythical disease that infects invaders with horrible illness that the locals are immune to. However, I don't much buy into it because slavers routinely raid the island and get out pretty unscathed"

**Tyrion**: "Neither did I, but apparently it's true... Some sort of disease carried by _butterflies_ of all things has infected those who tried to claim the island, and they have requested us to send them ships for an emergency evacuation from the Islan-"  
**Bronn**: "I'm sorry, who tried to invade the island and why should we care about them?"  
**Tyrion**: "It's the unsullied soldiers. After leaving Kings Landing, their leader took them to the island with the intent of killing the locals and taking the land for themselves, but they have contracted the local disease and currently cannot escape."  
**Davos**: "What happened to their ships? Cant they just sail away with the men who are still well?"  
**  
Tyrion**: "Various reports indicate that some of their ships were lost at sea during the voyage, others were taken apart to establish a small fort where they landed, and others no longer in sailing condition due to decay... Due to these circumstances, the unsullied are trapped on the island on the other side of the sea, and have asked us to rescue them"  
**  
Samwell**: "So we have to decide if we should help them or not?"  
**Tyrion**: "That is the situation, yes"  
**Bronn**: "I'm going to go ahead and vote 'fuck em' and leave them to their own. I actually feel better knowing that roaming army of cockless soldiers wont show up on our shores again anytime soon"  
**Tyrion**: "Very well, one vote for 'fuck them', what do you all vote?"

**Davos**: "How many ships are they requesting? We don't exactly have ships to spare at the moment, let alone for some operation on the other side of the sea"  
**Tyrion**: "They are requesting at least 12. Preferably 15"  
**Davos**: "Well we can spare 5 as of this moment, but by the time they get there 5 might be all they need"  
**Bronn**: "I hope you're not talking about the 5 ships used for express cargo delivery. They have some wine shipments coming in soon, I'd prefer to have that happen rather then the city go dry"  
**Brienne**: "I thought the next couple of shipments were to be stone and tools for rebuilding the city"  
**Bronn**: (Sips wine from a goblet) "That got bumped down the priority list"

**Brienne**: "Please tell me you didn't personally order that your wine be a higher priority for transport than the materials needed for reconstruction"  
**Bronn**: "Okay, I didnt"  
**Davos**: (After a pause) "Well is that true?"  
**Bronn**: (Longer pause) "Thats an entirely different question"

**Tyrion**: "Back to the issue at hand... We need to decide if we should assist the unsullied before discussing the logistics of how to do so. Brienne, your thoughts?"

**Brienne**: "I am tempted to order any wine coming in be dumped into the harbor and sail immediately to rescue the unsullied"  
**Bronn**: "The material will get here anyways. Some wines go bad after a while, stone doesnt. No need to get frissy about it"  
**Brienne**: "I am not being-... Whatever"  
**Tyrion**: "You vote for rescue?"  
**Brienne**: "I'm currently undecided"  
**Bronn**: "Whats there to decide? Those fanatics didn't think twice before they started killing soldiers in the street who had already surrendered, and they sure seemed quiet when their queen started burning shit"

**Brienne**: "They took orders from their queen who had saved them all from slavery. If she ordered them to kill half of each other, they would have done it"  
**Bronn**: "Which doesn't sound like a bunch of people I'd want to see poking around in this city"  
**Brienne**: "They also paid a heavy price fighting the undead in the north while other soldiers regrouped. Where were you when the battle to end all battles was being fought again?"  
**Tyrion**: (Under his breath) "Securing Highgarden... From me..."

**Bronn**: "Look, I've been in a lot of military campaigns, and not all of them were successful. We couldn't just assume that if an operation went bad that some far off nation would take pity and come and rescue us. The Unsullied knew the risks they undertook, or at least should have known better, and now they should have to deal with it... On their own"

**Davos**: "I may have to also vote 'no' on this one... Rescuing diseased soldiers risks bringing the disease all the way here to Kings Landing where we're already having some outbreaks."  
**Samwell**: "Well we don't have to bring them back all the way _here_... Do we?"  
**Tyrion**: "It is a possibility that we can simply drop them off on some other piece of land and leave them be... But given that a lot of them are seriously ill, they would probably request being taken to a city with the means of caring for the afflicted"

**Bronn**: "Well then they should ask those other cities, because Kings Landing is currently NOT the place to be in that regard"  
**Davos**: "While I respect the sacrifice they made at Winterfell, it seems like an awful lot to try to do without any real payoff or benefit on our end."  
**Brienne**: "The honorable thing to do would be to help them"  
**Bronn**: "If a man tries to fuck the wife of a bigger, much stronger man, then gets caught right away, is that man's brother compelled by honor to go help him from rightfully getting his ass beat?"  
**Tyrion**: (Smirking) "Jaime hated it when I did that"  
**Brienne**: "The answer is yes, honor would compel you to rescue them. Their morality at the end of the war may have been questionable, but because of their sacrifice at Winterfell, I believe they've earned a chance to live. We should rescue them"  
**Tyrion**: "Samwell, your thoughts?"

A brief pause hangs over the room as Samwell squints awkwardly at an uninteresting part of the wall on the other side of the room.

**Samwell**: "Butterflies?"  
**Everyone**: (Confused silence)  
**Samwell**: "You said that butterflies spread the disease to them, correct?"  
**Tyrion**: (Still confused) "Y-yes... That was specifically mentioned in the messages I've received"

**Samwell**: (Grimacing) "Oh dear..."

Everyone waits as Samwell gathers his thoughts and explains what random thing from a book he read one time is now incredibly relevant to the situation.

**Samwell**: "While I was at the Citadel, I did come across tales of this disease that was so heinous and horrible that some ancient peoples regarded the insects that transmitted them as agents of death. One tribe that used to live on Naath were so scared of butterflies that they actively went out and sought to kill as many of them as possible, and those who killed the most were named chief."

**Davos**: "What disease would be so horrible where killing butterflies would give you an ability to press a claim to be _king_?"  
**Samwell**: "Its called _Mirtevo Meso_... A disease named 'Dead Flesh', those infected with the disease literally have their flesh fall off from their body. Skin, muscles, tissue... All the way to the _bone_"

Davos, Brienne, and Tyrion shiver and grimace while Bronn takes a deep, deep gulp of wine from his goblet.

**Samwell**: "Normally I would take pity on the unsullied and vote on their behalf, considering honor and their sacrifices, but if the disease they're suffering from is the one I think it is... Then they're all already dead... And any mission to rescue them could quite well be a suicide mission for those on board"

For once, a long and eerie silence hung over the room that did not fill the air with tension and anxiety. Instead, a sense of dread and sadness permeated the air, everyone had sullen looks on their faces as they only now understood not only the hopelessness of how they could help, but also the grim circumstances that the unsullied themselves must have been suffering through. Hundreds of miles from any help, in a foreign land, afflicted with a truly horrible disease with no way out... It truly must be hell on earth if there ever were a place.

The council almost could have been dismissed without anyone else saying a word, but Tyrion kept things formal by asking for a final vote.

**Tyrion**: "Is there anyone who votes 'yes' on the measure?"

No one raised their hand

**Tyrion**: "Who votes 'no'?"

Everyone including Tyrion reluctantly raised their hand, except for Brienne, who kept her hands down and didn't move a muscle.

**Brienne**: "We should send one ship... Just one"  
**Davos**: "What would be the point of that?"  
**Brienne**: "To pick up anyone who by some miracle survived, perform reconnaissance of the area since we know very little about that region, and try to get an official account of what happened there"

**Bronn**: "Is all that really necessary?"  
**Brienne**: "Is it too much to spare just one ship for those who arguably sacrificed more than anyone else to fighting the dead at Winterfell?"

As pointless as such a task seemed to be, especially for one to be undertaken on the other side of the world, it was a small concession that the council was willing to make. Davos and Samwell exchanged a few glances and nodded in agreement, and then Tyrion gave a quiet nod as the three of them made a majority vote on the matter.

**Tyrion**: "And with that decision, we are adjourned for the day"


	6. Chapter 6: The Westerlands

It was a rare day for the small council. A day where Tyrion, Bronn, Davos, Brienne, and Samwell did not feel dread in the pits of their stomachs as they took their seats knowing that some critically important task was at hand requiring a decision to be made with no easy solutions... Instead, only a number of minor issues required their attention and decision, many of which resolved with a simple yes/no vote that did not put any two members of the council strongly on differing sides. The ease of such decisions, such as approval of the new seal for messages from the king, creation of a code of laws of King Bronn's commands, making parts of the castle more wheel-chair accessible, were handled with such speed that by noon the council managed to solve upwards of 20 issues within the city rather then having to spend an entire day just to resolve one big one... Everyone on the council was in almost a jolly spirit, with an occasional story being told in between the micro-votes and a healthy amount of wine being consumed in the process.

But then, when the discussion shifted towards the current state of the kingdoms the members of the council came from, one of the members moods went noticeably sullen, and it was quickly discovered by the remainder of the council since the one with a look of contempt on their face came from none other then Tyrion himself.

* * *

**Bronn**: "Last I heard of him he was dragged halfway to Dorne because someone tied that old fuckers wooden leg to the side of his deaf horse and then slapped him to make it take off... How the bastard survived that is beyond me, but I imagine his fighting days are done now"  
**Samwell**: "He SURVIVED that? How is that even possible?"  
**Bronn**: "Hell if I know. The horse must have been going at a light trot otherwise his skin would have been scraped off and he'd have bled to death"  
**Davos**: "Something on your mind Tyrion?"

Davos is the first to notice Tyrion's change in behavior. Rather then glancing at everyone and participating in the conversation, his gaze became fixed on different random objects and he grew quiet, sipping his wine in silence.

**Tyrion**: "All this talk of our houses, or the lands we came from..." He sighs, wondering how he should phrase what he thought about saying while still debating if he should even bring it up...  
**Bronn**: "What's been going on at Casterly Rock? Don't you run it when you're not dealing with us?"  
**Tyrion**: "Actually I'm not..." He begins. "When we took the Westerlands from Cersei in our initial invasion from Dragonstone using the Unsullied, the Iron fleet cut them off by sea while Cersei took the Lannister army to Highgarden instead. The Unsullied had to leave the city behind as a result, and the kingdom fell under control of a coalition of lesser houses that were still loyal to Cersei up until the end of the war"

**Davos**: "Let me guess, they don't see you as the rightful heir since they believe you're a traitor to your house, and now they fight amongst it among themselves?"  
**Tyrion**: "Actually no... Well, yes, but not quite... They all do think I'm a traitor to my house since, arguably I am, but because they were still loyal to Cersei and were forced to provide as many troops to her as they could, their armies were all effectively annihilated when Kings Landing was burned to the ground, so now Casterly Rock and its loyal houses of the Westerlands have dissolved into pockets of anarchy and lawlessness..."  
**  
Samwell**: "Doesn't any of the houses control the gold mines in the Lannister lands? Surely whoever held control over those areas would be able to establish control and order over the other houses"  
**  
Tyrion**: "Casterly Rock stopped producing gold years ago, before Daenerys even crossed the narrow sea... Its why Cersei was so willing to give it up and instead bring Highgarden under her control... With the Lannister house gone and the lands that once bore riches now being effectively worthless, everyone in the region has become poor and destitute, nearly the same as those here in Kings Landing"

**Bronn**: "If they're all poor and desperate then whats stopping you from swooping in and taking control? You of all people are the most capable of securing influence and managing things in a new... Thing..."  
**Samwell**: "A new _environment_"  
**Bronn**: "What Im saying is if they're all powerless then wouldn't it be that much easier for you to take control of things? You've done that against much harder odds"  
**Tyrion**: "While I appreciate your faith in my abilities, I cannot think of a place in the entire world that would desire more than anything else to see me dead than the former lords and peasants of Casterly Rock. They would accept Cersei's dead corpse as their leader before me."  
**Brienne**: "Cant you name a successor in your place? As Tyrion Lannister, son of Tywin, you're the last of the Lannisters, and therefore are the only one who could rightfully claim to be its ruler and grant authority over Casterly Rock to another house"

**Tyrion**: "Any house I elect would be targeted by the others and be immediately discredited. No house would want the endorsement of the person who destroyed everything for them, nor would they stand in allegiance to a house that receives such an endorsement either."

**Samwell**: "Have you talked to King Bran about this?"  
**Tyrion**: "None of his 'visions' have given him any ideas for how to handle the situation, and he has far more important things to worry about then Casterly Rock right now so I have avoided pressing him on it"  
**Brienne**: "Casterly Rock is one of the 6 kingdoms of the realm, it is very important we figure out a solution to it!"  
**Tyrion**: "It _was_ one of the 7 kingdoms of-, one of the _6_ kingdoms of the realm, but now it is nothing. A port city with no ships, hills with no gold, and a big fucking rock that stands over everything"

What Tyrion wasn't telling the rest of the council was that he was aware of the situation in Casterly Rock because of messages King Bran received from lords of neighboring lands about conditions within the region. Refugees from the Westerlands were spilling into other kingdoms seeking order and refuge from the chaos that descended over the region, putting large strains on kingdoms that had already suffered immensely during the wars up to that point. Bran could not provide any answers with his visions, and Tyrion began to feel so guilty about the situation that he started to avoid it and concern himself with any other matter rather than pay attention to it.

In addition to feeling guilty, Tyrion was hopeless that anything could even be done. There could not be a military campaign into the Westerlands to install a new leader under the banner of King Bran because there was no army left for King Bran to command. Apart from the Dothraki obviously, but those men are nation destroyers, not nation builders. The best idea Tyrion could briefly consider was splitting the Westerlands up among other kingdoms, primarily the Iron Islands and the Riverlands, increasing their influence as kingdoms to match those of Highgarden and The Eyrie.

But no decision was ever made, so no solution was ever implemented.

**Bronn**: "What was the name of that fucker from the Riverlands? That Stark uncle or other who thought he should be the next king just because he was locked up in prison thanks to Walder Frey?"  
**Davos**: "Edmure Tully... Of House Tully"  
**Bronn**: "How about you have him do it? Let him take his little army into the Westerlands, allow him to appoint some new lord over the area. He can keep some land for himself which isn't worth anything anymore, and then he solves the problem for us"  
**Davos**: "We could appoint him to the open position of Mater of War to sweeten the deal if we have to"  
**Tyrion**: "I did think of that before, but what would stop Edmure from taking over everything? What would stop him from annexing the entire Westerlands short of armed conflict with another kingdom?"

**Brienne**: "Honor would compel him to show restraint when ordered to, and honor is what he seeks"  
**Bronn**: "He doesn't seek honor, he seeks power, to be feared"  
**Samwell**: "Maybe he only seeks prestige"  
**Tyrion**: "We don't know which one he seeks, power or prestige or honor, and I'm not willing to sacrifice the Westerlands just to find out. Would allowing him to take lands from the kingdom stabilize it? Perhaps. Would he be able to restrain himself when ordered to stop by a king who has no army? Perhaps not... Its a risk I don't think we should take"

**Davos**: "If I may butt in, I would like to say that it might not be a good idea to let a lord take lands from another kingdom, otherwise other powerful kingdoms could consider preying on smaller and weaker kingdoms... If the Westerlands gets divied up by more powerful kingdoms, Dorne could be next, then us. 6 kingdoms relatively balanced in power becomes 3 kingdoms taking every bit of land they can get in order to stay as powerful as the others. Its a slippery slope"

**Samwell**: "That has happened quite frequently with kingdoms in Essos. I could name almost a dozen examples of times when-"  
**Bronn**: "DONT... Please... We get it. It's fine."  
**Samwell**: (Sad)  
**Tyrion**: "I would have brought this issue up with you if there were different ways we could solve the problem and had to decide on one, but there just hasn't been any options worth considering, short of letting other kingdoms cannibalize the area for themselves... Anyone here have any suggestions?"

As badly as everyone wanted to come up with a solution that could help save one of the nobler houses of the 6 kingdoms, no one could come up with any solutions. How do you restore order in a region whose economy has effectively collapsed, whose previous rulers were now just as powerless as everyone else, and when you yourselves were incredibly limited in what you could do to improve stability your own kingdom, let alone another one? The possibility that the Westerlands could be in chaos for months if not years appeared to be an unavoidable reality more than a worst case scenario.

**Brienne**: "If we dispatch diplomats or spies to the region to learn more about the situation, couldn't that possibly give us insight into what we could do in the future to help the region?" She wonders aloud "We still don't know a great amount of detail about the situation, more details could help us make a decision"  
**Bronn**: "The entire area is fucked, what details could change anything?"  
**Brienne**: "Its better than doing nothing"  
**Davos**: "It would be a good test for our new spymaster to undertake, wherever Lady Lara may be right now"  
**Tyrion**: "I suppose it couldn't hurt, and it would help us be able to reexamine the situation in the future should we choose to do so"


End file.
